SMEs’ Attention to HR Means Business Suffers – Croner Research
New business development and customer service affected while SME’s spend time on HR
London (February 1, 2010) – With small businesses already under increased pressure to perform their way out of the recession, SME organisations have revealed that crucial areas such as new business development and customer service are suffering as a result of time spent managing HR issues.
According to research by Croner www.croner.co.uk, the UK’s leading provider of workplace information and consultancy services, part of Wolters Kluwer, well over half (60%) of those in SME organisations have no formal HR training. These include CEOs, MDs, finance directors, operations directors, line managers and PA/secretaries – and even HR managers. But one in 10 is spending up to 15 hours or two days a week on HR. Dealing with red tape and regulations (40%) and health & safety (19%) were cited as the most time-consuming activities.
Unsurprisingly, spending so much time on these necessary activities - which also include managing employee performance, monitoring absenteeism and logging holiday leave - is having a negative effect on businesses. Three quarters of CEOs and MDs cite new business development and customer service as the most likely areas to suffer.
“Last year was one of the toughest for businesses with almost 27,000 companies going under as a result of the recession,” says Richard Smith, Head of Service Development at Croner. “It is obviously important that all companies adhere to HR processes but not at the expense of business survival and expansion. SMEs need to look at new ways of simplifying HR and other compliance activities and freeing key people to attend to the core responsibilities of their job.”
The Croner survey reveals that the effort put into managing employees is not adding to confidence, with 26% of people managing HR in SMEs saying they are not sure whether they are taking the right steps. They are concerned that, if they get it wrong, the company could face an employment tribunal claim. A quarter of respondents admit to having no external HR support while one in 10 rely on a trawl of the internet for help – which is often an unproductive exercise.
To help SMEs reduce the time spent complying with business regulations, Croner has launched Croner Simplify www.croner.co.uk/simplify, a proactive business compliance solution that combines dedicated consultant support with a secure, easy to use online service. Businesses benefit from expert support on HR, health and safety, financial administration and other commercial legal queries. Croner Simplify enables employee records to be stored centrally, replacing the need for paperwork and providing an audit trail of actions and documents. It includes a traffic light warning system, highlighting red for risk, amber for action required and green for OK - alerting managers to any immediate actions, upcoming deadlines and potential problems. It also enables a dedicated Croner consultant to proactively help them deal with situations before they become a time-consuming and costly problem.
Croner’s Richard Smith says: “Too many key people in SMEs end up spending a lot of time, effort and money sorting out problems, often because they are still relying on paper files (31%) to manage employee records, or because they are not aware of the pitfalls of particular actions. With Croner Simplify, businesses can streamline administration and get the practical guidance they need to minimise the risk of issues developing.”
Note on the research
All figures are from research agency 72 Point. Total sample size was 309 adults - CEOs, MDs, finance directors, operations directors, other directors, PA/secretaries, line managers and HR managers - in companies employing between 20-100+ people. The survey was carried out online between 12 and 19 January 2010. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).
For further information contact:
Caroline Sweeney/Laura Pykett
Flagship Consulting
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About Wolters Kluwer UK
Wolters Kluwer UK, incorporating the core brands, Croner and CCH, is the UK's most respected provider of information and consultancy services, providing a range of smart information tools that help make businesses more effective and profitable — from online interactive products and CD-ROMs to books, professional journals, loose-leaf publications and advice lines. www.croner.co.uk www.cch.co.uk www.wolterskluwer.co.uk
About Wolters Kluwer
Wolters Kluwer is a leading global information services and publishing company. The company provides products and services globally for professionals in the health, tax, accounting, corporate, financial services, legal and regulatory sectors. Wolters Kluwer has annual revenues (2008) of €3.37 billion, maintains operations in over 33 countries across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific and employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in the Netherlands. Visit www.wolterskluwer.com for information about its market positions, customers, brands and organisation.
Contact
David Wells
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Wolters Kluwer UK
+44 (0) 20 8247 1169
david.wells@wolterskluwer.co.uk
Anna King
Flagship Consulting
+ 44 (0) 20 7886 8452
anna.king@flagshipconsulting.co.uk